Alan Rudkin

Alan Rudkin, the former Liverpudlian bantamweight who has died aged 68, will
be remembered as one of the best British boxers never to win a world title.

1972: Rudkin looking thoughtful after training at the Noble Art Gymnasium in London .Photo: HULTON ARCHIVE

6:21PM GMT 21 Nov 2010

An aggressive box-fighter with an impressive punch, Rudkin captured the British, European and Commonwealth 118lb belts, only to come up short in three valiant attempts to seize the world crown – it was his misfortune that he had to fight exceptional champions on foreign soil on all three occasions.

Nevertheless, Rudkin's outstanding skills and tremendous fighting heart established him as a major sports personality at the time Merseybeat was putting Liverpool on the world map.

Alan Rudkin was born in Liverpool on November 18 1941.

He proved a useful amateur at the Golden Gloves club and went on to be a member of the England team that famously beat the United States 10-0 at Wembley's Empire Pool in November 1961, stopping his American opponent in the third round in front of a live television audience.

He turned professional the following year, knocking out Dickie Hanna in the second round at Liverpool on May 15 1962. Despite losing his next fight, Rudkin subsequently pieced together an impressive winning streak before stopping Belfast's Johnny Caldwell in 10 rounds at Nottingham on March 22 1965 to capture the British and Commonwealth bantamweight crowns.

Later that year Rudkin had his first world shot, losing over 15 rounds to the hugely popular Masahiko "Fighting" Harada in Tokyo on November 30 1965.

The following year he lost his belts to Scottish stylist Walter McGowan on a rousing night at Wembley, and then failed in an attempt to wrest the European title from Spain's Ben Ali.

Despite these setbacks Rudkin bounced back to regain the British and Commonwealth belts by outpointing McGowan at Manchester on May 15 1968, a superb display which paved the way for a second world title tilt, against the Aborigine Lionel Rose in Melbourne on March 8 1969. Following another torrid 15 rounds, Rudkin was adjudged a somewhat unfortunate loser on a split decision.

The Liverpudlian fought on. He won a Lonsdale Belt outright by stopping Scotland's Evan Armstrong in the eleventh before agreeing to another perilous assignment by travelling to Los Angeles to challenge Mexico's Ruben Olivares for the world title on December 12 1969.

There, before a hostile, jeering crowd at Inglewood Forum, Rudkin's world title dream was finally ended when he was knocked down three times in the second.

He remained a force at domestic and European level, however, turning back the clock to stop Londoner Johnny Clark in 12 rounds to win back his old British and Commonwealth crowns and halting Italy's Franco Zurlo in the eleventh to again claim the European title.

After outpointing Clark in their rematch at London's Royal Albert Hall on January 25 1972 Rudkin decided to retire having lost just eight of his 50 contests.

Rudkin, who subsequently became a publican in Liverpool, remained a popular figure on the fight scene and was awarded the MBE in 1980. The weekend before he died he attended a reunion of boxers who had fought at celebrated Shoreditch Town Hall venue.

Alan Rudkin, who died on September 22, was divorced. Two sons and a daughter survive him.